Image capture apparatus and control method

ABSTRACT

An image capture apparatus includes an image capture unit, a communication unit that receives subject information about a subject captured by an external apparatus, and a control unit that controls the image capture apparatus based on a first operation mode in a case where the subject information does not include information about a main subject, or based on a second operation mode in a case where the subject information includes the information about the main subject. The first operation mode is an operation mode of searching for the main subject, and the second operation mode is an operation mode of capturing an image of the subject at an angle of view that is different from an angle of view of the external apparatus.

BACKGROUND Field of the Disclosure

Aspects of the disclosure generally relate to an image capture apparatuswith a changeable shooting angle of view, a method of controlling thesame, and a storage medium that stores a program relating thereto.

Description of the Related Art

Image capture systems that capture subject images using cameras (imagecapture apparatuses) are known. In the image capture systems,orientations and image capturing of all cameras are generally controlledby a person manually. However, in a case where images of fast-movingsubjects are to be captured, it is difficult for a person to manuallycontrol all the cameras and capture images.

An image capture system that overcomes the above-described issue isknown. Specifically, the image capture system includes cameras, and thecameras share information and cooperate to automatically capture subjectimages. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.2015-15559 discusses a system in which subject information detected by aparent camera is transmitted to a child camera and the child cameradetermines an image capture timing based on the transmitted information.This realizes simultaneous image capturing for a specific subject fromdesired directions by cameras.

With the configuration discussed in Japanese Patent ApplicationLaid-Open No. 2015-15559, however, since the image capture timing of thechild camera is controlled based on the subject information detected bythe parent camera, all the cameras are unable to capture an image of thesubject in a case where the parent camera loses sight of the subject.Furthermore, the child camera is automatically controlled only duringthe time the parent camera is capturing an image of the subject.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect of the embodiments, in a case where an imagecapture apparatus loses sight of a subject and is no longer able tocapture an image of the subject, another image capture apparatus cancapture an image of the subject.

According to an aspect of the embodiments, there is provided an imagecapture apparatus that includes an image capture unit, a communicationunit that receives subject information about a subject captured by anexternal apparatus, and a control unit that controls the image captureapparatus based on a first operation mode in a case where the subjectinformation does not include information about a main subject, or basedon a second operation mode in a case where the subject informationincludes the information about the main subject. The first operationmode is an operation mode of searching for the main subject, and thesecond operation mode is an operation mode of capturing an image of thesubject at an angle of view that is different from an angle of view ofthe external apparatus.

According to an aspect of the embodiments, there is provided a methodthat includes receiving subject information about a subject captured byan external apparatus, and controlling the image capture apparatus basedon a first operation mode in a case where the subject information doesnot include information about a main subject, or based on a secondoperation mode in a case where the subject information includes theinformation about the main subject. The first operation mode is anoperation mode of searching for the main subject, and the secondoperation mode is an operation mode of capturing an image of the subjectat an angle of view that is different from an angle of view of theexternal apparatus.

Further aspects of the embodiments will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating information for communicating betweenan unmanned image capture apparatus (drone) and another image captureapparatus (handheld camera) according to first to fifth exemplaryembodiments.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe unmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the first tofifth exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe other image capture apparatus (handheld camera) according to thefirst to fifth exemplary embodiments.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a change of an image capturemode according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the firstexemplary embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the secondexemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 7A to 7C are diagrams illustrating a control operation fordetermining an image capture opportunity of a main subject by theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the thirdexemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 8A & 8B is a diagram illustrating a change of an image capturemode according to the third exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the thirdexemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a sequence of changing the imagecapture mode according to the fourth exemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are image diagrams illustrating a change of the imagecapture mode according to the fourth exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a sequence of changing the imagecapture mode according to the fifth exemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are image diagrams illustrating a change of the imagecapture mode according to the fifth exemplary embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments, features, and aspects of the disclosure will bedescribed below with reference to the drawings. However, aspects of thedisclosure are not limited to the following embodiments. In thedescriptions of the exemplary embodiments below, similar configurations,similar operations, and similar processes are respectively given thesame reference numerals in the drawings. While a camera-integrated droneand a handheld camera are described as image capture apparatuses in theexemplary embodiments below, the image capture apparatuses applicable tothe exemplary embodiments are not limited to camera-integrated dronesand handheld cameras. The image capture apparatuses can be apparatusesof any forms as long as an angle of view of at least one image captureapparatus can be changed based on an image captured by another imagecapture apparatus.

[First Exemplary Embodiment] A first exemplary embodiment will now bedescribed. In the first exemplary embodiment, an image capture system inwhich a camera-integrated drone that can move without a person and acamera (hereinafter, “handheld camera”) operated by a person to capturean image cooperate to capture images will be described.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating information for communicating betweenan unmanned image capture apparatus (drone) and another image captureapparatus (handheld camera) according to the exemplary embodiments. Adrone 100 includes an image capture unit 110 consisting of, for example,an imaging optical unit 111 and an image sensor 112 described below. Thedrone 100 is an unmanned image capture apparatus that can fly without aperson. The drone 100 includes motors for rotating four rotors 101 to104. The motors rotate the rotors 101 to 104 with an appropriate balanceto fly the drone 100. The image capture unit 110 performs an imagecapture operation based on the determination by a below-describedcentral processing unit (CPU) 130 installed in the drone 100. Details ofthe CPU 130 and an image capture condition will be described below.

A handheld camera 200 is an image capture apparatus operated by a person(user) to capture an image. The drone 100 and the handheld camera 200communicate various types of information via a wireless communicationfacility, such as Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi). In the first exemplaryembodiment, the handheld camera 200 transmits a live view (hereinafter,“LV”) image captured by the handheld camera 200 to the drone 100 via thewireless communication facility, such as Wi-Fi. Furthermore, the drone100 detects a pre-registered main subject from images captured by thedrone 100 and images transmitted from the handheld camera 200, andcalculates coordinates of the detected main subject. The drone 100further transmits the calculated coordinate information to the handheldcamera 200 via the wireless communication facility, such as Wi-Fi.

The handheld camera 200 includes an imaging optical unit 201 andoperation members, such as a shutter button 202 and a dial 203. Theimaging optical unit 201 can be fixed to the handheld camera 200 or canbe a detachable interchangeable lens. The shutter button 202 is anoperation member for receiving a user operation and issuing an imagecapture instruction. The user issues an image capture preparationinstruction by half-pressing (SW1) the shutter button 202 and issues animage capture instruction by fully pressing (SW2) the shutter button202. The dial 203 is a dial-type operation member. The user can change asetting or issue an instruction to change, for example, a menu, a mode,or a setting by turning the dial 203.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe unmanned image capture apparatus (drone) according to the firstexemplary embodiment.

The image capture unit 110 includes the imaging optical unit 111, theimage sensor 112, and an image processing unit 113. The image captureunit 110 captures an image of a subject and generates image data. Theimaging optical unit 111 includes a focus lens, a zoom lens, and adiaphragm. The imaging optical unit 111 performs focus adjustment andexposure adjustment and forms a subject image on the image sensor 112.The image sensor 112 is an image sensor, such as a charge-coupled device(CCD) image sensor, that converts an optical image formed via theimaging optical unit 111 into an electric signal.

The image processing unit 113 is an image processing unit that performsvarious types of image processes, such as a white balance adjustmentprocess and a noise reduction process, to perform development on thecaptured image data.

A main subject detection unit 114 detects a pre-registered main subjectfrom an input image. For example, in a case where the main subject is aperson, the main subject detection unit 114 detects the orientation andsize of the face of the main subject. The subject detection unit 114acquires various types of information, such as the position of the mainsubject on an image capture screen, about the main subject. The mainsubject detection unit 114 detects the main subject from an imagecaptured by the drone 100. The main subject detection unit 114 detectsthe main subject from an LV image received from the handheld camera 200via a communication unit 132 as described below.

A recording unit 115 records a captured image in a recording medium.

An image capture control unit 116 includes a sub-CPU, andcomprehensively controls the image capture unit 110 to execute imagecapturing.

A dynamic random access memory (DRAM) 117 is a memory for temporarilystoring image data.

A main subject position calculation unit 118 generates coordinateinformation about the main subject. The main subject positioncalculation unit 118 generates distance information between the drone100 and the main subject based on images captured by the drone 100 anddetection results of the main subject detection unit 114. The distancebetween the main subject and the drone 100 can be calculated by acommonly-used known method. The main subject position calculation unit118 generates coordinate information about the main subject based on theacquired distance information and the coordinate information about thedrone 100 acquired by a global positioning system (GPS) 133 describedbelow. The coordinate information about the main subject that has beencalculated by the main subject position calculation unit 118 istransmitted to the handheld camera 200 via the communication unit 132described below.

An information acquisition unit 119 acquires information about the mainsubject included in a received LV image based on a detection result ofthe main subject detected by the main subject detection unit 114 fromthe LV image received from the handheld camera 200. The informationacquisition unit 119 acquires information, such as the orientation andsize of the face of the main subject captured by the handheld camera200, from the detection result of the main subject detected by the mainsubject detection unit 114 from the LV image acquired from the handheldcamera 200. The information acquisition unit 119 further acquiresposition information about the handheld camera 200 via the communicationunit 132, and calculates the position of the subject based on theacquired position information and the detection result of the mainsubject detected by the main subject detection unit 114 from the LVimage acquired by the handheld camera 200. The information acquisitionunit 119 acquires information, such as the orientation and size of theface of the main subject captured by the drone 100, from the result ofthe detection of the main subject detected by the main subject detectionunit 114 from images captured by the drone 100.

The CPU 130 is a control unit including at least one processor orcircuit and comprehensively controls the drone 100. The CPU 130 realizeseach below-described process in the exemplary embodiments by executing aprogram recorded in a storage unit 131 described below. The CPU 130calculates coordinates of a movement destination for image capturing atan angle of view different from the angle of view of the handheld camera200 based on, for example, information about the main subject in the LVimage from the handheld camera 200, information about the main subjectin the image captured by the drone 100, and a preset image capturecondition. The CPU 130 instructs a movement control unit 141 to move thedrone 100 to the calculated coordinates of the movement destination andinstructs the image capture control unit 116 to capture an image.

The storage unit 131 stores the programs executable by the CPU 130.

The communication unit 132 communicates with the handheld camera 200.The communication unit 132 transmits and receives the LV image capturedby the handheld camera 200 and various types of information, such as thecoordinates of the main subject. A data transfer control unit 135controls data transfer between the communication unit 132 and the imagecapture unit 110. The GPS 133 detects information about the position andcoordinates of the drone 100. A gyro sensor 134 detects an angle and anangular velocity of the drone 100.

A movement control apparatus 140 includes the movement control unit 141,motor control units 151 to 154, and motors 161 to 164. Rotors 101 to 104are respectively connected to the motors 161 to 164. The movementcontrol unit 141 includes a sub-CPU. The movement control unit 141controls flight of the drone 100 based on the instruction form the CPU130 and information detected by the gyro sensor 134.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe other image capture apparatus (handheld camera 200) according to thefirst exemplary embodiment.

An image capture unit 1010 includes an imaging optical unit 1011, animage sensor 1012, and an image processing unit 1013. The image captureunit 1010 captures a subject image and generates image data. The imagingoptical unit 1011 includes a focus lens, a zoom lens, and a diaphragm.The imaging optical unit 1011 performs focus adjustment and exposureadjustments and forms a subject image on the image sensor 1012. Theimage sensor 1012 is an image sensor, such as a CCD image sensor, thatconverts an optical image formed via the imaging optical unit 1011 intoan electric signal.

The image processing unit 1013 is an image processing unit that performsvarious types of image processes, such as a white balance adjustmentprocess and a noise reduction process, to perform development on thecaptured image data.

A main subject detection unit 1014 detects the pre-registered mainsubject from an input image. The main subject detection unit 114 detectsthe main subject from the input image. The main subject detection unit1014 acquires various types of information about the main subject, suchas the orientation and size of the face of the main subject and theposition of the main subject on an image capture screen.

A recording unit 1015 records an image captured by the handheld camera200 in a recording medium.

An image capture control unit 1016 includes a sub-CPU. The image capturecontrol unit 1016 comprehensively controls the image capture unit 1010and performs image capturing.

A DRAM 1017 is a memory for temporarily storing image data.

A main subject position calculation unit 1018 calculates coordinateinformation about the main subject.

An image capture range determination unit 1019 determines a range of ashooting angle of view based on lens zoom information acquired from theimaging optical unit 1011 or the image capture control unit 1016.

A CPU 1030 is a main CPU that comprehensively controls the handheldcamera 200. The CPU 1030 is a control unit including at least oneprocessor or circuit and comprehensively controls the handheld camera200. The CPU 1030 realizes each below-described process in the exemplaryembodiments by executing a program recorded in a storage unit 1031described below.

The storage unit 1031 stores programs that are executable by the CPU1030.

A communication unit 1032 communicates with the drone 100. Thecommunication unit 1032 transmits and receives the captured LV image andvarious types of information, such as the coordinates of the mainsubject. The communication unit 1032 transmits operation modeinstruction information to the drone 100 and receives auxiliaryinformation from the drone 100. The auxiliary information herein is animage captured by the drone 100 or position information about a subjectdetected by the drone 100.

A GPS 1033 detects information about the position and coordinates of thehandheld camera 200. A data transfer control unit 1035 controls datatransfer between the communication unit 1032 and the image capture unit1010. An operation member 1034 is an operation member that receives useroperations. The operation member 1034 includes the shutter button 202and the dial 203.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a change of an image capturemode according to the first exemplary embodiment. In the first exemplaryembodiment, an image capture system in which the drone 100 and thehandheld camera 200 cooperate and continuously capture images of thesame subject A as a main subject will be described below.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 includes two operationmode. FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating a first operation mode, and FIG.4B is a diagram illustrating a second operation mode. When activated,the drone 100 receives the LV image captured by the handheld camera 200.The drone 100 detects the subject A, which is pre-registered as the mainsubject, from the received LV image. In a case where the subject A isnot detected, the drone 100 operates in the first operation mode,whereas in a case where the subject A is detected, the drone 100operates in the second operation mode. In a case where the drone 100does not receive the LV image from the handheld camera 200, the drone100 operates in the first operation mode.

In the first exemplary embodiment, in a case where the main subjectdetection unit 114 detects the main subject and the face of the detectedmain subject is greater than a predetermined size, it is determined thatthe LV image includes information about the main subject. In a casewhere the main subject is not detected or the size of the face of thedetected main subject is not greater than the predetermined size, it isdetermined that the LV image does not include information about the mainsubject. In a case where the information acquisition unit 119 determinesthat the LV image captured by the handheld camera 200 does not includeinformation about the main subject, the drone 100 searches for the mainsubject, captures an image including the main subject, and records acaptured image in the recording medium (first operation mode).

In contrast, in a case where the information acquisition unit 119determines that the LV image captured by the handheld camera 200includes information about the main subject, the drone 100 captures animage at an angle of view different from the angle of view of thehandheld camera 200 and records a captured image in the recording medium(second operation mode).

The first operation mode will now be described with reference to FIG.4A. The first operation mode is an operation mode for a situation wherean image of the main subject is not captured by the handheld camera 200for some reason, e.g., the person (user) operating the handheld camera200 does not successfully detect the subject A which is the mainsubject. In a case where the subject A is not detected from the LV imagereceived from the handheld camera 200, the drone 100 operates in thefirst operation mode. In the first operation mode, the drone 100searches for the subject A from an LV image captured by the drone 100.In a case where the image captured by the drone 100 does not include thesubject A, the drone 100 searches for the subject A by changing an imagecapture direction and/or moving the position of the drone 100. When thesubject A is detected from a captured image, the drone 100 performsimage capturing based on a predetermined condition, such as an angle ofview, so that a captured image includes the subject A. For example, inthe first operation mode, an image capture direction (e.g., front) forthe subject A, or a ratio of face size and a face position of the mainsubject are preset to the drone 100. As described above in the firstoperation mode, the drone 100 searches for a specific subject andcaptures an image of the detected subject from a predetermined directionat a predetermined size.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 calculates thecoordinates (position information) of the subject A detected from theimage captured by the drone 100 based on information from the built-inGPS 133 and focal length information at the time of image capturing.When the subject A is detected from the image captured by the drone 100,the drone 100 transmits the calculated coordinate information about thesubject A to the handheld camera 200.

The handheld camera 200 includes the built-in GPS 1033 and acquires thecoordinates (position information) of the handheld camera 200 based oninformation from the GPS 1033. The handheld camera 200 compares thecoordinates of the subject A received from the drone 100 and thecoordinates of the handheld camera 200 and displays an arrow iconspecifying the location of the subject A on a display unit of thehandheld camera 200. The person (user) operating the handheld camera 200can move to a position where an image of the subject A can be capturedreferring to the displayed location information about the subject A. Ifthe person operating the handheld camera 200 finds the subject A andattempts to capture an image of the subject A, the LV image captured bythe handheld camera 200 includes the subject A. When the subject A isdetected from the LV image received from the handheld camera 200, thedrone 100 changes to the second operation mode.

The second operation mode will now be described with reference to FIG.4B. The second operation mode is an operation mode for a situation wherethe person operating the handheld camera 200 captures an image of themain subject. In this case, the drone 100 detects the subject A, whichis pre-registered as the main subject, from the LV image received fromthe handheld camera 200. In other words, this is a situation where thehandheld camera 200 can capture an image of the main subject. Thus, thedrone 100 captures an image different from the image captured by thehandheld camera 200. An image capture condition in the second operationmode is preset to the drone 100. For example, in the first exemplaryembodiment, the drone 100 is set to capture an image of the subject Acaptured by the handheld camera 200 at an angle of view different fromthe angle of view of the handheld camera 200. As a condition forcapturing an image of the main subject at the angle of view differentfrom the angle of view of the handheld camera 200, an angle difference(e.g., 90 degrees, and 180 degrees) from the orientation of the face ofthe main subject captured by the handheld camera 200, or a ratio of facesize and a position of the main subject with respect to the image can beset to the drone 100. The drone 100 receives information about the angleof view of the image captured by the handheld camera 200 from thehandheld camera 200 via the communication unit 132.

In a case where the subject A becomes undetectable from the LV imagereceived from the handheld camera 200 while the drone 100 is operatingin the second operation mode, the drone 100 changes to operate in thefirst operation mode. Thus, even in a case where the person operatingthe handheld camera 200 becomes unable to capture an image of thesubject A during image capturing, the drone 100 instead of the handheldcamera 200 can capture an image including the subject A based on thepredetermined condition, such as the predetermined angle of view.

As described above, in a situation where the person operating thehandheld camera 200 cannot capture an image of the main subject, thedrone 100 captures an image including the main subject based on thepredetermined condition, e.g., the drone 100 captures an image of themain subject from the front. Thus, an image of the main subject can becaptured without missing an image capture opportunity. Furthermore,while the person operating the handheld camera 200 captures an image ofthe main subject, the drone 100 captures an image of the main subjectfrom the angle of view different from the angle of view of the handheldcamera 200, and thereby images of the main subject can be captured atvarious angles of view.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone 100) according to the firstexemplary embodiment. The CPUs 130 and 1030 execute programs stored inthe storage unit 131 and 1031, and control the components of the drone100 and the components of the handheld camera 200 to thereby realize theprocess illustrated in the flowchart in FIG. 5. The flowchartillustrated in FIG. 5 starts when the drone 100 and the handheld camera200 are turned on and start cooperating.

In step S401, the drone 100 determines whether the image capture mode isactivated. In a case where the image capture mode is activated (YES instep S401), the process of FIG. 5 proceeds to step S402. In contrast, ina case where the image capture mode is not activated (NO in step S401),the drone 100 waits for activation of the image capture mode.

In step S402, the drone 100 acquires an LV image captured by thehandheld camera 200 via the communication unit 132.

In step S403, the information acquisition unit 119 determines whetherthe LV image acquired from the handheld camera 200 includes informationabout a pre-registered main subject. In a case where the LV imageacquired from the handheld camera 200 does not include information aboutthe main subject (NO in step S403), the process of FIG. 5 proceeds tostep S404. In contrast, in a case where the LV image includesinformation about the main subject (YES in step S403), the process ofFIG. 5 proceeds to step S408.

In the case where the LV image from the handheld camera 200 does notinclude the main subject, in step S404, the CPU 130 issues aninstruction to the image capture unit 110 and the movement controlapparatus 140, captures images at different angles of view whilechanging the position or image capture direction of the drone 100, andsearches for the main subject.

In step S405, the CPU 130 determines whether the main subject detectionunit 114 detects the main subject in the image captured by the drone100. In a case where the main subject is detected (YES in step S405),the process of FIG. 5 proceeds to step S406. In contrast, in a casewhere the main subject is not detected (NO in step S405), the process ofFIG. 5 returns to step S402, and steps S402 to S405 are repeated untilthe main subject is detected from the LV image acquired from thehandheld camera 200 or from the image captured by the drone 100.

In the case where the main subject is detected in step S405, in stepS406, the drone 100 notifies the handheld camera 200 of the positioninformation about the detected main subject.

In step S407, the movement control unit 141 controls the drone 100 tomove to a position where an image of the main subject can be captured inthe preset condition based on the position information about thedetected main subject. At this time, for example, the orientation of theface of the main subject, the ratio of the face with respect to theangle of view, and the position of the face can be preset as a conditionfor the drone 100 to capture an image of the main subject.

In contrast, in a case where the information acquisition unit 119determines that the LV image from the handheld camera 200 includesinformation about the main subject (YES in step S403), the process ofFIG. 5 proceeds to step S408. In step S408, the movement control unit141 controls the drone 100 to move to a position where the drone 100 cancapture an image at the angle of view different from the shooting angleof view of the handheld camera 200.

In step S409, the CPU 130 determines whether the movement of the drone100 is completed. In a case where the movement is not completed (NO instep S409), the process of FIG. 5 returns to step S402, and steps S402to S409 are repeated. The drone 100 is then moved to a position wherethe drone 100 can capture an image at a desired angle of view.

When the movement to the position where an image can be captured at thedesired angle of view is completed (YES in step S409), in step S410, theCPU 130 instructs the image capture control unit 116 to capture an imageof the main subject and record the captured image.

In step S411, whether a user instruction to stop is received isdetermined. If an instruction to stop is received (YES in step S411),the operation is stopped. If an instruction to stop is not received (NOin step S411), the process of FIG. 5 returns to step S402, and the samecontrol is repeated. In any of the steps in the flowchart, in a casewhere an operation stop instruction is received, the image capture modeis stopped, and the flowchart ends.

As described above, with the control according to the first exemplaryembodiment, the drone 100 captures an image of the main subject, andtherefore an image of the main subject is captured without missing animage capture opportunity even in a case where the handheld camera 200loses sight of the main subject. Furthermore, since the handheld camera200 and the drone 100 capture images at different angles of view, thepossibility of missing an image capture opportunity is further reduced.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 determines thatinformation about the main subject is included in a case where the faceof the main subject detected from the LV image received from thehandheld camera 200 is greater than the predetermined size.Alternatively, the determination can be based on a condition other thanthe face size.

Furthermore, while the image capture condition (e.g., an image is to becaptured from the front) for the drone 100 in the first operation modeis preset in the first exemplary embodiment, the setting is not limitedto that described above. For example, the handheld camera 200 may setthe image capture condition for the drone 100 and transmit the conditionto the drone 100, and the drone 100 may capture an image in thetransmitted condition. Similarly, the image capture condition (e.g., animage is to be captured at a different angle of view) for the drone 100in the second operation mode may be set by the person operating thehandheld camera 200, and an instruction about the set condition may betransmitted to the drone 100.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 captures an image ofthe main subject from the front in the first operation mode.Alternatively, the drone 100 may capture an image in an image capturecondition other than the front, or the drone 100 can capture differentimages in image capture conditions.

Furthermore, the drone 100 captures an image of the main subject at theangle of view different from the angle of view of the handheld camera200 in the second operation mode. Alternatively, different image captureconditions may be set, and images may be captured at different angles ofview. Furthermore, the drone 100 may capture an image in an imagecapture condition other than the different angle of view or may capturean image of another subject. Furthermore, the drone 100 may capture animage at a wide angle of view including the main subject, determine animage capture target using a unique algorithm, or capture an image whilesequentially changing the angle of view.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the LV image captured by the handheldcamera 200 is transmitted to the drone 100. Alternatively, the handheldcamera 200 may detect information about the main subject captured in theLV image and transmit the detected information to the drone 100.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the handheld camera 200 displays thearrow icon specifying the location of the main subject on the screenbased on the main subject information received from the drone 100.Alternatively, any other forms may be used to display the location ofthe main subject. For example, the handheld camera 200 may display thecoordinates of the position of the main subject or the direction orcoordinates to which the handheld camera 200 should move.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 includes a unit foracquiring main subject information and a unit for changing the operationmode. Alternatively, an image capture system that controls the drone 100or the handheld camera 200 may include the units.

[Second Exemplary Embodiment] A second exemplary embodiment will now bedescribed in detail with reference to FIG. 6.

Configurations of a drone 100 and a handheld camera 200 according to thesecond exemplary embodiment are similar to those illustrated in FIGS. 2and 3 in the first exemplary embodiment, and thus redundant descriptionsthereof are omitted. The second exemplary embodiment is different fromthe first exemplary embodiment in that the handheld camera 200 caninstruct the drone 100 to change from the second operation mode to thefirst operation mode and the drone 100 changes the mode based on theinstruction from the handheld camera 200. Furthermore, in the secondexemplary embodiment, the drone 100 notifies the handheld camera 200 ofwhether the image capture condition for the main subject in the firstoperation mode matches the preset image capture condition. Whereby, theoperation mode can be changed so that the drone 100 captures an image ofthe main subject without waiting until the main subject is no longerdetected from the LV image in a case, for example, where the handheldcamera 200 is to capture an image of a subject other than the mainsubject temporarily.

In the second exemplary embodiment, operations in changing from thesecond operation mode to the first operation mode will be described. Inthe second operation mode illustrated in FIG. 4B, as in the firstexemplary embodiment, the handheld camera 200 captures an image of thesubject A, and the drone 100 captures an image of the subject A at anangle of view different from the angle of view of the handheld camera200. In a case where the person operating the handheld camera 200captures an image of a subject different from the subject A, the mainsubject is no longer detected from the LV image captured by the handheldcamera 200 in the first exemplary embodiment. Thus, the drone 100automatically changes to the first operation mode (FIG. 4A). However, ittakes time for the drone 100 to move to a position where the drone 100can capture an image in the preset image capture condition (e.g., thefront of the subject) for the first operation mode, so that an imagecapture opportunity of the main subject may be missed during themovement.

In the second exemplary embodiment, the person operating the handheldcamera 200 instructs the drone 100 to change to the first operation modeby operating the operation member 1034 (e.g., forced mode change button)of the handheld camera 200. When the drone 100 receives a forced modechange instruction to change to the first operation mode, the drone 100changes to the first operation mode and starts moving to a positionwhere an image of the subject A can be captured in the preset imagecapture condition (e.g., the front of the subject A) for capturing animage of the subject A.

In the first exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 does not change to thefirst operation mode until the subject A is no longer detected from theimage received from the handheld camera 200. In the second exemplaryembodiment, the person operating the handheld camera 200 can startcapturing an image of a subject other than the subject A using thehandheld camera 200 after the drone 100 is changed to the firstoperation mode and moved.

When an instruction to change the operation mode is received from thehandheld camera 200, the drone 100 moves to a position (e.g., the frontof the subject A) that matches the preset image capture condition andwhere an image of the subject A as the main subject can be captured.When the image capture condition for the subject A matches the presetimage capture condition, the drone 100 notifies the handheld camera 200that the movement is completed. The drone 100 captures an image of thesubject A in the predetermined condition and records the captured imagein the recording medium. The person operating the handheld camera 200starts image capturing for another subject after the movement completionnotification is received from the drone 100. This prevents an imagecapture opportunity of the main subject from being missed during theoperation mode change.

In a case where the person operating the handheld camera 200 desires tocapture an image of the main subject again, the forced mode changeinstruction is cancelled using the operation member 1034, and therebythe drone 100 changes the operation mode based on the LV image from thehandheld camera 200 again.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone 100) according to the secondexemplary embodiment. The CPUs 130 and 1030 execute programs stored inthe storage unit 131 and 1031, and control the components of the drone100 and the components of the handheld camera 200 to thereby realize theprocess illustrated in the flowchart in FIG. 6. The flowchartillustrated in FIG. 6 starts when the drone 100 receives an instructionto change the operation mode issued by a user operation from thehandheld camera 200 in the image capture sequence illustrated in FIG. 5.

The CPU 130 determines whether a forced mode change instruction isissued from the handheld camera 200. In a case where a forced modechange instruction is issued, the process illustrated in FIG. 6 isstarted. In a case where the forced mode change is cancelled, theprocess of FIG. 6 returns to the operations based on the image capturesequence in FIG. 5.

In step S601, the movement control unit 141 controls the drone 100 basedon the position information about the detected main subject to move thedrone 100 to a position where the drone 100 can capture an image of themain subject at the preset angle of view. The information acquired bythe image capture sequence illustrated in FIG. 5 is used as the positioninformation about the main subject. For example, in a case where thehandheld camera 200 captures an image of the main subject, the positioninformation about the main subject is detected based on the main subjectposition information detected by the main subject position calculationunit 118 and the position information about the handheld camera 200acquired from the information acquisition unit 119. In a case where thehandheld camera 200 does not capture an image of the main subject, thedrone 100 searches for the main subject, detects the main subject, andcalculates the position of the main subject as described above in stepsS404 and S405.

In step S602, the CPU 130 determines whether the movement is completed.

If the movement is completed (YES in step S602), the process of FIG. 6proceeds to step S603. In step S603, a notification of the completion ofthe movement is transmitted to the handheld camera 200.

In step S604, an image of the main subject is captured, and the capturedimage is recorded.

In step S605, if a user instruction to stop is received (YES in stepS605), the CPU 130 of the drone 100 stops operating. If an instructionto stop is not received (NO in step S605), the process of FIG. 6 returnsto step S601, and the subsequent processes are continued.

When the CPU 130 of the drone 100 is instructed to cancel the forcedmode change instruction by the handheld camera 200, the flowchart ends,and the process of FIG. 6 returns to the image capture sequence in theflowchart illustrated in FIG. 5. In any of the steps in the flowchart,the image capture mode stops, and the flowchart ends when an instructionto cancel the forced operation mode change has been received.

As described above, with the control according to the second exemplaryembodiment, the operation mode is changed from the second operation modeto the first operation mode based on a user instruction to cause thedrone 100 to capture an image of the main subject.

In the second exemplary embodiment, the image capture condition (e.g.,capturing an image from the front) for the drone 100 in the firstoperation mode is preset. Alternatively, the user may set the imagecapture condition by operating the handheld camera 200, and the drone100 may capture an image based on a user instruction from the handheldcamera 200. Furthermore, the drone 100 captures an image of the mainsubject from the front in the first operation mode in the secondexemplary embodiment. Alternatively, the drone 100 may capture an imagein an image capture condition other than capturing from the front, ordifferent images may be captured in image capture conditions.

[Third Exemplary Embodiment] A third exemplary embodiment will now bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 7A to 9. Hardwareconfigurations of a drone 100 and a handheld camera 200 according to thethird exemplary embodiment are similar to those in the first exemplaryembodiment, and thus redundant descriptions thereof are omitted.

In the third exemplary embodiment, an image capture system will bedescribed in which the drone 100 captures a bird's-eye view image of anentire range regardless of an image captured by the handheld camera 200and notifies the handheld camera 200 of information about the mainsubject when an image capture opportunity of the main subject isdetected.

The drone 100 operates in a third operation mode in which a bird's-eyeview image of an entire range is captured regardless of the imagecaptured by the handheld camera 200. Thereafter, the drone 100 changesto the first operation mode for capturing an image of the subject A as amain theme when the drone 100 detects an image capture opportunity ofthe subject A registered as the main subject based on a change in thecaptured images. At the same time, the drone 100 notifies the handheldcamera 200 that there is an image capture opportunity. If the handheldcamera 200 arrives at the position of the subject A and starts capturingan image of the subject A, the drone 100 returns to the third operationmode and captures a bird's-eye view image.

In the third exemplary embodiment, the information acquisition unit 119detects the subject A, which is pre-registered as the main subject, fromthe image captured by the drone 100 and detects a motion vector of thesubject A. The motion vector is generated by a conventional method ofcalculating the difference between the coordinates of the position ofthe subject A in a frame of interest and the coordinates of the positionof the subject A in the previous frame.

FIGS. 7A to 7C are diagrams illustrating a control operation ofdetermining an image capture opportunity of the main subject with theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone 100) according to the thirdexemplary embodiment. FIG. 7A illustrates an image captured by the drone100. FIG. 7B illustrates detected motion vectors of subjects and thecaptured image divided into four regions. FIG. 7B illustrates motionvectors 800 to 814 that are detected motion vectors. FIG. 7C illustratesdetailed information about the detected motion vectors.

In FIG. 7C, IDs indicate the motion vectors 800 to 814 illustrated inFIG. 7B. The information about the motion vectors includes, for example,the coordinate position in the previous frame (start point of thearrow), the coordinate position in the frame of interest (end point ofthe arrow), the region to which the motion vector belongs among regions1 to 4 of the image, the movement amount, and the absolute value of theaverage of the motion vectors in each region. A great absolute value ofthe average of the movement amounts indicates that the subjects in theregion are moving in the same direction.

In the third exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 determines that thereis a high possibility of an image capture opportunity of the mainsubject beyond the subjects when subjects move in the same direction. Ina case where the absolute value of the average of the movement amountsis greater than a preset threshold value, the drone 100, which has beencapturing a bird's-eye view image of an entire range, accordingly movesto a region with a great absolute value of the average of the movementamounts and starts capturing an image of the area. The drone 100 thennotifies the handheld camera 200 of position information about the mainsubject detected by the main subject search.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams illustrating a change of the image capturemode according to the third exemplary embodiment. FIG. 8A is a diagramillustrating a change from the third operation mode to the firstoperation mode.

In the third exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 is preset to capture abird's-eye view image of an entire range prior to image capturing, andat the time of activation (start time of image capturing), the drone 100operates in the third operation mode.

The third operation mode will now be described. The third operation modeis an operation mode in which the drone 100 captures a bird's-eye viewimage of an entire range within a preset range regardless of an imagecaptured by the handheld camera 200. An image capture range of the drone100 for bird's-eye view images can be preset by a user operation (e.g.,a range of a field in a case of a sports day). When the operation modeis changed to the third operation mode, the drone 100 then captures abird's-eye view image of the entire preset range. At this time, thedrone 100 may capture a bird's-eye view image at once to cover theentire set range, or capture images from different image capturedirections and/or at different angles of view.

The drone 100 detects motion vectors from each divided region of thebird's-eye view image as described above and determines an image captureopportunity of the main subject. When the image capture opportunity isdetected, the drone 100 changes to the first operation mode, moves tothe position where the subject A, which is the main subject, isconsidered to be present, searches for the subject A, and captures animage of the subject A as a main theme. The drone 100 then detects thesubject A based on information from the built-in GPS 133 and thecaptured image, calculates the coordinate information about the subjectA based on, for example, position information about the subject A, andtransmits the calculated coordinate information to the handheld camera200.

The handheld camera 200 compares the coordinates of the subject Areceived from the drone 100 and the coordinates of the handheld camera200, and displays an arrow icon specifying the location of the subject Aon a liquid crystal panel of the handheld camera 200. The personoperating the handheld camera 200 can move to a position where an imageof the subject A can be captured referring to the displayed informationabout the location of the subject A.

FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating a change from the first operation modeto the third operation mode. When the person operating the handheldcamera 200 finds the main subject and attempts to capture an image ofthe main subject, the operating person transmits a notification to thedrone 100 by operating an operation member such as a button on thepanel. When the drone 100 receives a signal notifying that the handheldcamera 200 has arrived at the image capture position for the subject Afrom the handheld camera 200, the drone 100 returns to the thirdoperation mode and captures a bird's-eye view image of the entire range.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an image capture sequence of theunmanned image capture apparatus (drone 100) according to the thirdexemplary embodiment. The CPUs 130 and 1030 execute programs stored inthe storage unit 131 and 1031, and control the components of the drone100 and the components of the handheld camera 200 to thereby realize theprocess illustrated in the flowchart in FIG. 9. The flowchartillustrated in FIG. 9 starts when the drone 100 and the handheld camera200 are turned on to start cooperation.

In step S901, the drone 100 determines whether the image capture mode isactivated. If the image capture mode of the drone 100 is activated (YESin step S901), the process of FIG. 9 proceeds to step S902.

In step S902, the drone 100 operates in the third operation mode andcaptures a bird's-eye view image of the entire preset range.

In step S903, while the drone 100 captures a bird's-eye view image inthe third operation mode, the information acquisition unit 119 acquiresmotion vectors and determines whether there is an image captureopportunity of the main subject based on the acquired motion vectors. Inthe third exemplary embodiment, the CPU 1030 determines that there is ahigh possibility of an image capture opportunity of the main subjectbeyond the subjects, in a case where, for example, subjects move in thesame direction. If the CPU 1030 determines that there is an imagecapture opportunity (YES in step S903), the process of FIG. 9 proceedsto step S904. If the CPU 1030 determines that there is not an imagecapture opportunity (NO in step S903), the process of FIG. 9 proceeds tostep S902 to continue capturing of a bird's-eye view image.

In step S904, the drone 100 moves to the region determined as a regionwhere there is an image capture opportunity based on the motion vectorsacquired in step S903, and searches for the main subject.

In step S905, the CPU 1030 determines whether the informationacquisition unit 119 has detected the main subject. If the main subjectis detected (YES in step S905), the process of FIG. 9 proceeds to stepS906. If the main subject is not detected (NO in step S905), the processof FIG. 9 returns to step S904 to continue the search.

In step S906, the drone 100 moves to the position (e.g., the front ofthe main subject) set as the image capture condition for the firstoperation mode for capturing the main subject as a main theme. At thistime, the drone 100 notifies the handheld camera 200 of the positioninformation about the main subject.

In step S907, the CPU 1030 determines whether the handheld camera 200has arrived at the image capture position for the main subject. If thehandheld camera 200 has not arrived at the position (NO in step S907),the process of FIG. 9 proceeds to step S908. If the handheld camera 200has arrived at the position (YES in step S907), the process of FIG. 9proceeds to step S909. Whether the handheld camera 200 has arrived atthe image capture position is determined based on whether, for example,a signal notifying that the handheld camera 200 has arrived at the mainsubject position is received from the handheld camera 200.

When the handheld camera 200 has arrived at the image capture positionfor the main subject, in step S908, the drone 100 captures an image ofthe main subject as a main theme in the first operation mode.

In step S909, when a user instruction to stop image capturing isreceived (YES in step S909), the drone 100 stops operating. If a userinstruction to stop is not received (NO in step S909), the process ofFIG. 9 returns to step S904, and the subsequent steps are continued.

In step S910, if a user instruction to stop image capturing is received(YES in step S910), the drone 100 stops operating. If a user instructionto stop is not received (NO in step S910), the process of FIG. 9 returnsto S902, and the capturing of a bird's-eye view image is continued untilan image capture opportunity of the main subject is detected. In any ofthe steps in the flowchart, the drone 100 stops the image capture modeand ends the flowchart when an operation stop instruction is received.

As described above, with the control according to the third exemplaryembodiment, the drone 100 detects the image capture opportunity of themain subject and captures an image of the main subject, even if thehandheld camera 200 does not recognize an image capture opportunity ofthe main subject.

In the third exemplary embodiment, the drone 100 determines an imagecapture opportunity of the main subject based on a change in the motionvectors. Alternatively, an image capture opportunity of the main subjectmay be determined based on a luminance change in the regions.Furthermore, in the above-described example, whether the handheld camera200 has started capturing an image of the main subject is determinedbased on a user operation. Alternatively, the determination may beperformed in response to the detection of the main subject in the LVimage captured by the handheld camera 200 as in the first exemplaryembodiment.

[Fourth Exemplary Embodiment] A fourth exemplary embodiment will bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 10, 11A, and 11B. In thefourth exemplary embodiment, the operation of the drone 100 changesbetween a main image capture mode and a detection mode depending on theimage capture range of the handheld camera 200. The fourth exemplaryembodiment is different from the first exemplary embodiment in that theoperation mode of the drone 100 changes based on the image capture rangeof the handheld camera 200. The information communicated between theunmanned image capture apparatus and the other image capture apparatusand hardware configurations of the drone 100 and the handheld camera 200are similar to those in the first exemplary embodiment, and thusredundant descriptions thereof are omitted.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a sequence of changing the imagecapture mode according to the fourth exemplary embodiment. The CPUs 130and 1030 execute programs stored in the storage unit 131 and 1031, andcontrol the components of the drone 100 and the components of thehandheld camera 200 to thereby realize the process illustrated in theflowchart in FIG. 10. The flowchart illustrated in FIG. 10 starts whenthe drone 100 and the handheld camera 200 are turned on and startcooperating.

In step S1101, it is determined whether the handheld cameras

In step S1102, the CPU 130 compares the image capture range of thehandheld camera 200 and a threshold value and determines whether theimage capture range is smaller than the threshold value. At this time,the size of the image capture range is calculated from, for example,zoom information about the imaging optical unit 1011. If the imagecapture range is smaller than the threshold value (YES in step S1102),the process of FIG. 10 proceeds to step S1103. If the image capturerange is equal to or greater than the threshold value (NO in stepS1102), the process of FIG. 10 proceeds to step 1105.

In step S1103, the handheld camera 200 transmits an instruction tooperate in a fourth operation mode (main image capture mode) to thedrone 100.

In step S1104, the drone 100 having received the instruction informationstarts main image capturing. The fourth operation mode (main imagecapture mode) in the fourth exemplary embodiment is a mode in which thedrone 100 captures an image including the same subject as the mainsubject captured by the handheld camera 200 as a recording image.Specifically, at the time of issuing an instruction to operate in themain image capture mode, the handheld camera 200 recognizes the subjectbeing captured, determines the main subject, and transmits positioninformation about the main subject to the drone 100. The drone 100determines a main image capture region based on the positioninformation.

In step S1105, the handheld camera 200 transmits an instruction tooperate in a fifth operation mode (detection mode) to the drone 100.

In step S1106, the drone 100 having received the instruction informationchanges the operation mode to the fifth operation mode (detection mode).The detection mode in the fourth exemplary embodiment is a mode in whichthe drone 100 searches for a situation of an image capture opportunityand a subject and detects and recognizes the situation and the subject,and notifies the handheld camera 200 of the detected and recognizedinformation, such as the direction of the area for an image captureopportunity and subject information. As used herein, the term “imagecapture opportunity” refers to, for example, a situation that matches acondition related to information about the movement amount or directionof the subject or a condition related to the distance from a specificsubject. An image capture opportunity and subject information to bedetected are determined based on the preset condition. Conditions andsubject information can be held, and conditions and subject informationcan be added and updated as needed.

In step S1107, the CPUs 130 and 1030 determine whether the handheldcamera 200 or the drone 100 stops image capturing. If the imagecapturing is not stopped (NO in step S1107), the process of FIG. 10returns to step S1102. If the image capturing is stopped (YES in stepS1107), the flowchart ends.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are image diagrams illustrating a change of the imagecapture mode according to the fourth exemplary embodiment. FIG. 11Aillustrates the main image capture mode, and FIG. 11B illustrates thedetection mode. A solid line frame 1201 denotes the image capture rangeof the handheld camera 200, and a dashed line frame 1202 denotes athreshold value frame for changing the operation mode of the drone 100.In a case where the image capture range is smaller than the thresholdvalue frame as illustrated in FIG. 11A, the drone 100 operates in thefourth operation mode (main image capture mode) and records an imageincluding the subject captured by the handheld camera 200 as indicatedby a solid line frame 1203. In contrast, in a case where the imagecapture range of the handheld camera 200 is equal to or larger than thethreshold value frame of the image capture range as illustrated in FIG.11B, the drone 100 changes to the fifth operation mode (detection mode)and operates to search for a target object to be detected in a widerange as indicated by a solid line 1204.

As described above with the control according to the fourth exemplaryembodiment, automatic changing between the mode for assisting thehandheld camera 200 in not failing to capture an image and the mode forassisting in the detection of the image capture opportunity and the mainsubject is controlled based on the size of the image capture range ofthe handheld camera 200. In the fourth exemplary embodiment, in a casewhere the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 is small, it isdetermined that the user of the handheld camera 200 wishes to capture animage of a specific subject, and thus the drone 100 also captures animage of the same subject. In a case where the image capture range ofthe handheld camera 200 is wide, it is determined that the user of thehandheld camera 200 is searching for a subject to be captured, and thusthe drone 100 searches for and detects a specific image captureopportunity and a pre-registered subject to support the user in imagecapturing.

In the fourth exemplary embodiment, the image capture range isdetermined based on lens control information about the handheld camera200. Alternatively, the image capture range may be determined based onthe size of the subject captured by the handheld camera 200.

[Fifth Exemplary Embodiment] A fifth exemplary embodiment will bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 12, 13A, and 13B. In thefifth exemplary embodiment, the operation of the drone 100 changesbetween the fourth operation mode (main image capture mode) and a sixthoperation mode (bird's-eye view image capture mode) based on the imagecapture range of the handheld camera 200. The fifth exemplary embodimentis different from the third exemplary embodiment in that the operationmode of the drone 100 changes based on the image capture range of thehandheld camera 200 regardless of a determination result of the imagecapture opportunity and the main subject captured by the handheld camera200. Hardware configurations of the drone 100 and the handheld camera200 illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 are similar to those in the firstexemplary embodiment, and thus redundant descriptions thereof areomitted.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a sequence of changing the imagecapture mode according to the fifth exemplary embodiment. Steps S1101,S1102, and S1107 are similar to those illustrated in FIG. 10, and thusredundant descriptions thereof are omitted. The CPUs 130 and 1030execute programs stored in the storage unit 131 and 1031, and controlthe components of the drone 100 and the components of the handheldcamera 200 to thereby realize the process illustrated in the flowchartin FIG. 12. The flowchart illustrated in FIG. 12 starts when the drone100 and the handheld camera 200 are turned on and start cooperating. Instep S1102 in the flowchart, if it is determined that the image capturerange of the handheld camera 200 is less than the threshold value (YESin step S1102), the process of FIG. 12 proceeds to step S1301.

In the case where the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 isless than the threshold value (YES in step S1102), in step S1301, thehandheld camera 200 transmits an instruction to operate in the sixthoperation mode (bird's-eye view image capture mode) to the drone 100.

In step S1302, the drone 100 having received the instruction informationis changed to the sixth operation mode (bird's-eye view image capturemode). The bird's-eye view image capture mode in the fifth exemplaryembodiment is a mode in which the drone 100 captures an image of a widerrange than the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 thatincludes the same subject as the subject captured by the handheld camera200 as a recording image.

If the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 is equal to orgreater than the threshold value (NO in step S1102), in step S1303, thehandheld camera 200 transmits an instruction to operate in the fourthoperation mode (main image capture mode) to the drone 100.

In step S1304, the drone 100 having received the instruction informationstarts image capturing in the fourth operation mode (main image capturemode). The main image capture mode in the fifth exemplary embodiment is,for example, a mode of capturing an image of a specific subject in apredetermined condition such as an angle of view, e.g., zoom-up imagecapturing. For example, a subject with respect to the handheld camera200 or a pre-registered main subject are sequentially enlarged, andimages thereof are captured.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are image diagrams illustrating a change of the imagecapture mode according to the fifth exemplary embodiment. FIG. 13Aillustrates the main image capture mode, and FIG. 13B illustrates thebird's-eye view image capture mode. In a case where the image capturerange is wider than the threshold value frame indicated by the dashedline frame 1202 as illustrated in FIG. 13A, the drone 100 operates inthe fourth operation mode (main image capture mode). Specifically, thedrone 100 operates to record an image including the main subjectcaptured by the handheld camera 200 as indicated by solid line frames1401 or an image including the main subject registered in advance in thedrone 100.

In contrast, in a case where the image capture range of the handheldcamera 200 is smaller than the threshold value frame indicated by thedashed line frame 1202 as illustrated in FIG. 13B, the drone 100operates in the sixth operation mode (bird's-eye view image capturemode). As indicated by a solid line frame 1402, the drone 100 operatesto record an image of a wider range than the image capture range of thehandheld camera 200 that includes the subjects captured by the handheldcamera 200.

As described above, with the control according to the fifth exemplaryembodiment, the assistance in not missing an image capture opportunityand the simultaneous capturing of images of a wide region and a smallregion are automatically controlled based on the image capture state ofthe handheld camera 200. In the fifth exemplary embodiment, in a casewhere the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 is small, theuser of the handheld camera 200 captures an image of a zoom-up specificsubject, and thus the drone 100 captures a wide-angle image evenincluding the periphery of the same subject. In contrast, in a casewhere the image capture range of the handheld camera 200 is wide, thehandheld camera 200 cannot capture an enlarged image of the specificsubject. The image capturing by the user is therefore supported by thedrone 100 zooming in and capture an image of a subject included in theshooting angle of view of the handheld camera 200 and a pre-registeredmain subject.

While the first to fifth exemplary embodiments are described above,which one of the settings of changing the operation mode according tothe above-described exemplary embodiments is to be used in a system inwhich cameras including a camera capable of autonomously capturing animage cooperates to capture images can be preset.

For example, in a case where the user wishes to capture an image of anentire range while capturing an image without missing the main subject,the change setting according to the first exemplary embodiment isenabled. In a case where each camera is to capture an image basicallyfreely, the change setting according to the third exemplary embodimentis enabled to receive a notification if the other camera detects animage capture opportunity.

In a case where the user does not pre-register the main subject andwishes to not miss as many image capture opportunities other than animage of the subject captured by the handheld camera 200 as possible atdifferent times, the change setting according to the fourth exemplaryembodiment is enabled. In a case where an image of each of subjectscaptured by the handheld camera 200 is to be captured as a main theme atdifferent times, the change setting according to the fifth exemplaryembodiment is enabled.

Furthermore, according to the second exemplary embodiment, a cameracapable of autonomously capturing an image can be forced to capture animage of a main subject by a user operation regardless of the changesetting.

In the exemplary embodiments described above, the drone 100 and thehandheld camera 200 cooperate and capture images. However, the imagecapture apparatuses do not have to be a drone and a handheld camera.Furthermore, in the exemplary embodiments described above, two imagecapture apparatuses the drone 100 and the handheld camera 200 cooperateand capture images. However, three or more image capture apparatuses cancooperate and capture images.

Each handheld camera 200 described in the exemplary embodiments isapplicable to a digital still camera, a digital video camera, or asmartphone capable of capturing images.

[Sixth Exemplary Embodiment] At least one of the various functions,processes, or methods described in the exemplary embodiments can berealized using a program. In a sixth exemplary embodiment, the programfor realizing at least one of the various functions, processes, ormethods described in the exemplary embodiments will be referred to as“program X”. Furthermore, in the sixth exemplary embodiment, a computerfor executing the program X will be referred to as a “computer Y”. APersonal computer, a micro-computer, or a central processing unit (CPU)are examples of the computer Y.

At least one of the various functions, processes, or methods describedin the exemplary embodiments can be realized by the computer Y byexecuting the program X. In this case, the program X is provided to thecomputer Y via a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readablestorage medium according to the sixth exemplary embodiment includes atleast one of a hard disk apparatus, a magnetic storage apparatus, anoptical storage apparatus, a magneto-optical storage apparatus, a memorycard, a read-only memory (ROM), or a random access memory (RAM).Further, the computer-readable storage medium according to the sixthexemplary embodiment is a non-transitory storage medium.

While aspects of the disclosure are described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the aspects of thedisclosure are not limited to the exemplary embodiments. The scope ofthe following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so asto encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2020-086426, filed May 18, 2020, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. An image capture apparatus comprising: an imagecapture unit; a communication unit that receives subject informationabout a subject captured by an external apparatus; and a control unitthat controls the image capture apparatus based on a first operationmode in a case where the subject information does not includeinformation about a main subject, or based on a second operation mode ina case where the subject information includes the information about themain subject, wherein the first operation mode is an operation mode ofsearching for the main subject, and the second operation mode is anoperation mode of capturing an image of the subject at an angle of viewthat is different from an angle of view of the external apparatus. 2.The image capture apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising arecording unit that records an image captured by the image capture unitin a recording medium, wherein in a case where the search for the mainsubject is performed in the first operation mode and the main subject isdetected from an image captured by the image capture unit, the recordingunit records the image in the recording medium.
 3. The image captureapparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a view changing unitthat changes an angle of view at which the image capture unit performsimage capturing, wherein in a case where the search for the main subjectis performed in the first operation mode and the main subject isdetected from an image captured by the image capture unit, the viewchanging unit changes an angle of view at which the image capture unitperforms image capturing for the main subject based on a preset imagecapture condition, and the image capture unit captures an image of themain subject at the angle of view that is changed by the view changingunit.
 4. The image capture apparatus according to claim 2, wherein in acase where the search for the main subject is performed in the firstoperation mode and the main subject is detected from an image capturedby the image capture unit, position information about the main subjectis transmitted to the external apparatus.
 5. The image capture apparatusaccording to claim 3, further comprising: a detection unit that detectsa motion vector from the image captured by the image capture unit; and adetermination unit that determines a position of the main subject fromthe motion vector, wherein the view changing unit changes the angle ofview at which the image capture unit performs image capturing based onthe position of the main subject that is determined by the determinationunit in the first operation mode.
 6. The image capture apparatusaccording to claim 1, further comprising a recording unit records theimage captured at the angle of view that is different from the angle ofview of the external apparatus in a recording medium in the secondoperation mode.
 7. The image capture apparatus according to claim 3,wherein in the second operation mode, the view changing unit changes theangle of view at which the image capture unit performs image capturingto the angle of view that is different from the angle of view of theexternal apparatus based on the subject information and the preset imagecapture condition, and wherein the image capture unit performs imagecapturing at the angle of view that is changed by the view changingunit.
 8. The image capture apparatus according to claim 3, wherein theview changing unit changes the angle of view at which the image captureunit performs image capturing such that the image capture unit capturesthe image of the main subject from a direction different from an imagecapturing direction of the external apparatus and the captured imageincludes the main subject captured by the external apparatus in thesecond operation mode.
 9. The image capture apparatus according to claim3, wherein the view changing unit changes the angle of view at which theimage capture unit performs image capturing such that the image captureunit captures an image of a subject different from the main subjectcaptured by the external apparatus in the second operation mode.
 10. Amethod comprising: receiving subject information about a subjectcaptured by an external apparatus; and controlling the image captureapparatus based on a first operation mode in a case where the subjectinformation does not include information about a main subject, or basedon a second operation mode in a case where the subject informationincludes the information about the main subject, wherein the firstoperation mode is an operation mode of searching for the main subject,and the second operation mode is an operation mode of capturing an imageof the subject at an angle of view that is different from an angle ofview of the external apparatus.
 11. A non-transitory storage medium thatstores a program causing a computer to execute a method, the methodcomprising: receiving subject information about a subject captured byanother image capture apparatus; and controlling the image captureapparatus based on a first operation mode in a case where the subjectinformation does not include information about a main subject, or basedon a second operation mode in a case where the subject informationincludes the information about the main subject, wherein the firstoperation mode is an operation mode of searching for the main subject,and the second operation mode is an operation mode of capturing an imageof the subject at an angle of view that is different from an angle ofview of the other image capture apparatus.